Meet Amber And Eric Hoffman
Food | Drink | Travel
Meet Amber & “The Husband”
Amber is a recovering tax attorney from the largest law firm in the world. Now she is trying to eat her way around the globe. As a professional eater, she travels throughout the world in search of great eats, amazing wines, and unique experiences, all while traveling With Husband In Tow. She encourages others to do the same, to explore the world through food and travel.
Eric is “The Husband,” her partner in crime for over 20 years. Although he was once firmly in tow, happy to let Amber plan their travels, Eric is now an integral part of the blog. Continue reading to learn how we met, where we’ve traveled, and what’s behind our travel blog name.
How To Travel For Food:
With over 70 countries and counting, Amber travels With Husband In Tow. Together, we seek new adventures in food travel. We travel on our stomachs. In this food and travel blog, we share tips and advice on culinary vacations, foodie vacations, cooking classes, and more.
How Amber And Eric Met (A Long Time Ago)
Before Our Food Adventure Began
Ah, we were oh so young. Eric and I met in college, back at Rutgers in 1997. I traveled a bit before we met, but some of our earliest conversations could have been the focus of a Bon Jovi ballad – we wanted to escape New Jersey and to explore. Back then, we both wanted to move to California, it was one of the few things we agreed on, as we kind of hated each other for the first six months we were dating. At the time I had no idea what a “foodie” was or that I would end up loving travel, let alone start a food travel blog.
Instead of heading west, we moved to Washington, D.C., so I could attend law school. We married in D.C. in the summer of 2001. After graduating from law school we stuck around in DC a few more years. Then, we jetted off to Chicago, for my Big Firm life. Little did we know, when we met in the nineties, that we would end up on a worldwide food tour, that never seemed to end.
We like to say that we’ve been together over 20 years and never a fight. And, if you believe that . . . .
What Does It Mean To Escape The Predictable Life
Why We Left The US To Travel For Food
I didn’t hate my lawyer life at first. But, I never knew why I went to law school, or what drove me to the law, other than to make money. I heard it was lucrative. That was enough for me. Back then, there were no blogs devoted to explaining why Big Law Sucks. Now, the internet is littered with them. Big Law just sort of sucked the life out of me. When I came down with tendonitis in 2007, a work-related injury, I knew a change was needed.
It took five more years and an around the world trip to make me realize what kind of change was needed. After ten years practicing law, we escaped, just like we said we would back in 1997. Instead of playing volleyball on the beach in California, though, we alternated between a semi-nomadic life, with a series of home bases. We lived in Bali and lived in Bangkok.
Even during our time living in Southeast Asia, we kept exploring the world, with one food trip after another. We took cooking classes and culinary tours. We visited every winery we could. All the while never regretting the decision we made to escape the predictable life we left behind.
The Food And Travel Life
The Food And Travel Life
I am now a recovering tax attorney, professional eater, writer, and social media consultant, and Eric and I work together. He complains he is no longer “in tow.” Instead, he is an integral part of the food travel blog. Even almost five years in, some days I feel we are just starting to really figure out how all of this digital nomad business works. But one thing is for certain, there is no return. In 2017, we left Southeast Asia, and left the semi-nomadic life and settled for good – in Girona, Spain! After five years of travel, settling down was required. But, we continue to organize tasty food holidays as much as we can. We have plenty more food travel tales to tell.
What’s With The Travel Blog Name?
How Did We Come Up With The Name?
One of the most common questions we receive from folks is why “With Husband In Tow”? Starting a travel blog is hard. Back in 2012, I had no idea where to begin. In fact, the first name we chose for the blog was simply ASH Travel, after my initials. At some point, we started researching travel blog names and how to pick a good one. We wanted something memorable, and boy did we come up with one. Actually, Eric did.
Eric chose the name of the blog. At the time, he was truly “In Tow.” Amber did all the planning and managed everything blog-related. Eric’s job was to come along for the ride and enjoy eating and drinking. He excelled at this task. Although we’ve stuck with the name, Eric is hardly in tow anymore. He takes many of the photos you see on the blog, manages many of the blog’s social media channels. And, he operates as the blog’s “Chief Relationship Officer.” If you send an email to the blog, chances are that Eric is the one responding.
Our Favorite Foodie Travel Destinations
Our Favorite Food and Travel Destinations
During the start of our world food trip, we focused on Asia and Southeast Asia. Now that we live in Europe, there are days I am ready to hop a flight back. Not to live, but at least to spend a month eating dumplings and spicy noodles. But, when living in Asia, we really missed wine and cheese, two things that are hard to find in Asia. Since moving to Europe, we’ve been excited to explore more in depth. To visit smaller cities, towns, and villages. To become food experts in several countries. Check out our Food Travel Guides on some of our favorite foodie destinations:
How To Travel Food Food
Where Else Can You Get Our Food And Travel Tips
Social Media
Together, we have over 170,000 engaged social media followers across all of our channels.
In addition to the blog’s main social channels below, feel free to follow Eric on Twitter for up-to-the-date information on where we are and what we are eating.